Rachael Heenan trained as a barrister but now works on strategies for solving healthcare organisations’ problems. Photograph: Rachael Heenan

My family has a history of working in the public sector and I have always been fascinated by healthcare; my first job was as a healthcare assistant when I was 15. I love working within the health sector – the issues are always complex and challenging, but you get to work with people who have a real desire to make patients’ lives better.

Lawyers often get a bad press, but many of us work in the sector because we want to help deliver the right, and safe, services for patients.

I originally trained as a barrister and then a solicitor but most of my time these days is working on strategies for solving organisations’ problems so they can concentrate on looking after patients.

No two days are the same – I usually get up at 5.30am to either get to the office in Leeds or London, or the station as I spend time with clients throughout the country. My role involves a mixed bag of client legal work, meetings with prospective clients and, as I sit on the board at the firm I work at, internal meetings to discuss the firm’s strategy and progression of its business plans. Clients come to me for advice on anything from workforce strategy, board development, dealing with concerns about doctors and executives or supporting investigations into patient safety issues.

The first thing I do in the morning is check my emails. Quite often, problems have kicked off which will need dealing with or allocating, and clients need a quick response time.

The range of issues we help clients with is astounding. Outside of human resources matters, they cover changes to services; reconfiguration of services; deciphering all the rules and regulations so that people can do their jobs; interpreting the complicated rules around commissioning care; commercial deals; inquests and dealing with families; and supporting clinical staff in making the right decision in the best interest of the patient.

I often meet clients at their sites where I get to see them in action. I always encourage the team when giving advice to healthcare organisations to imagine where the person is that is receiving the advice and what they are about to do (the chances are they are not waiting for a lawyer) – the advice needs to be clear, practical and help them make difficult decisions.

Lunch is a mixed bag depending on where I am. My attempts at eating healthily sometimes work and sometimes don’t.

Clients often talk to me about what is going on in the local health economy, their organisations, and nationally, which gives me a great oversight and understanding, and helps me feed into policy discussions. It’s fascinating to get inside the sector – which is not how the media portrays it at all. The people in the sector work with financial, political and patient safety and face challenges which many in the private sector would balk at; the pressure is immense.

Often in the evening I will talk to clients as they have demanding jobs, and the evenings are the only time that they can speak privately.

If there is time, I will cycle around where I live in Yorkshire. I love the hustle and bustle of the day, but nothing beats flying around the village lanes sprinting for the finish line. Bedtime is normally around 10pm – I am famous for not being able to stay up late.

Rachael Heenan is an employment law and governance specialist at Capsticks Solicitors LLP who act for health, social care and social housing providers on a range of legal issues

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